Tim Matavž
Slovenian footballer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Tim Matavž (born 13 January 1989) is a Slovenian professional footballer who plays as a striker for ND Gorica.[3]
|
Matavž with PSV in 2011 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Tim Matavž[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 13 January 1989 | ||
| Place of birth | Šempeter pri Gorici, SFR Yugoslavia[2] | ||
| Height | 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)[2] | ||
| Position | Striker | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | ND Gorica | ||
| Number | 9 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1995–2004 | Bilje | ||
| 2004–2006 | ND Gorica | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2006–2007 | ND Gorica | 30 | (11) |
| 2007–2011 | Groningen | 84 | (34) |
| 2008–2009 | → FC Emmen (loan) | 15 | (5) |
| 2011–2014 | PSV | 70 | (24) |
| 2014 | Jong PSV | 2 | (0) |
| 2014–2017 | FC Augsburg | 27 | (3) |
| 2016 | → Genoa (loan) | 7 | (0) |
| 2016–2017 | → 1. FC Nürnberg (loan) | 20 | (5) |
| 2017–2020 | Vitesse | 69 | (32) |
| 2020–2021 | Al Wahda | 19 | (12) |
| 2021–2022 | Bursaspor | 16 | (2) |
| 2022–2023 | Omonia | 10 | (3) |
| 2023–2024 | HNK Gorica | 39 | (5) |
| 2024– | ND Gorica | 13 | (2) |
| International career | |||
| 2006 | Slovenia U18 | 3 | (1) |
| 2006 | Slovenia U19 | 4 | (0) |
| 2007 | Slovenia U20 | 1 | (0) |
| 2006–2010 | Slovenia U21 | 20 | (6) |
| 2010–2020 | Slovenia | 39 | (11) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 18 February 2025 | |||
Club career
Matavž began his football career at the age of 6 playing for Bilje. In 2004, he moved to Gorica youth squads. He was promoted to their senior squad in the 2006–07 season and played a total of 30 matches in the Slovenian first division, scoring 11 goals in the process.[4]
On 30 August 2007, at the age of 18, he signed a five-year contract for Groningen.[5] On 26 September 2007 he scored four goals in KNVB Cup in a match against IJsselmeervogels,[6] but later moved to Emmen on loan and remained there until January 2009.
On 13 March 2009, Matavž scored his first goal in the Eredivisie in a 2–0 victory over Roda. Soon he began scoring for Groningen on regular basis in all competitions. On 24 February 2010 Matavž extended his contract with club until 2013.[7] On 6 February 2011, in a match against Willem II, Matavž scored his first hat-trick in the Eredivisie.[8]
On 2 February 2011, Groningen sporting director Hans Nijland said that Matavž had already agreed terms with Napoli and that he was looking forward to joining them.[9] However, Eredivisie side PSV Eindhoven were also in talks with Groningen to buy him before the transfer window closed. On 31 August 2011, Matavž eventually signed a five-year contract with PSV.[10]
On 29 June 2017, Matavž returned to the Netherlands, to join Vitesse on a three-year deal.[11][12]
On 19 July 2020, Matavž joined Al Wahda on a two-year deal.[13]
International career
On 9 October 2010, Matavž scored a hat-trick for Slovenia in the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying match against Faroe Islands.[14] At the age of 21, he became the youngest player ever to score three goals for Slovenia.[15] Overall, Matavž earned a total of 39 caps for the national team, scoring 11 goals.[16]
Personal life
Matavž was born in Šempeter pri Gorici, Slovenia (then part of Yugoslavia).[17] He is the cousin of fellow footballer Etien Velikonja.[18] In June 2014, Matavž married his long-term partner Polona Faganelj.[19] He has two daughters, Tia (born 2012) and Ela (born 2015), and one son, Val (born 2017).[20] Beside Slovene, Matavž is also fluent in Dutch.[21]
In April 2024, several Slovenian media outlets reported that Matavž had been charged with domestic violence, and that the court allegedly imposed a restraining order, preventing him from contacting his wife and children.[22][23][24]
Career statistics
Club
- As of 16 June 2024[2]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| ND Gorica | 2006–07 | Slovenian PrvaLiga | 27 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 1[a] | 0 | — | 31 | 13 | |
| 2007–08 | Slovenian PrvaLiga | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[b] | 1 | — | 5 | 1 | ||
| Total | 30 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 36 | 14 | ||
| Groningen | 2007–08 | Eredivisie | 15 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | — | 17 | 4 | |
| 2008–09 | Eredivisie | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 4[c] | 1 | 8 | 3 | ||
| 2009–10 | Eredivisie | 32 | 13 | 3 | 2 | — | 2[c] | 1 | 37 | 16 | ||
| 2010–11 | Eredivisie | 29 | 16 | 4 | 2 | — | 2[c] | 2 | 35 | 20 | ||
| 2011–12 | Eredivisie | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 4 | 3 | ||||
| Total | 84 | 34 | 9 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 4 | 101 | 46 | ||
| FC Emmen (loan) | 2008–09 | Eerste Divisie | 15 | 5 | 1 | 0 | — | 16 | 5 | |||
| PSV | 2011–12 | Eredivisie | 28 | 11 | 5 | 4 | 9[d] | 5 | — | 42 | 20 | |
| 2012–13 | Eredivisie | 27 | 11 | 4 | 2 | 7[d] | 7 | 0 | 0 | 38 | 20 | |
| 2013–14 | Eredivisie | 15 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6[e] | 2 | — | 22 | 4 | ||
| Total | 70 | 24 | 10 | 6 | 22 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 102 | 44 | ||
| FC Augsburg | 2014–15 | Bundesliga | 16 | 3 | 1 | 0 | — | 17 | 3 | |||
| 2015–16 | Bundesliga | 11 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4[d] | 0 | — | 17 | 0 | ||
| Total | 27 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 3 | ||
| Genoa (loan) | 2015–16 | Serie A | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 7 | 0 | |||
| 1. FC Nürnberg (loan) | 2016–17 | 2. Bundesliga | 20 | 5 | 1 | 0 | — | 21 | 5 | |||
| Vitesse | 2017–18 | Eredivisie | 30 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 5[d] | 1 | 5[f] | 2 | 41 | 17 |
| 2018–19 | Eredivisie | 14 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 4[d] | 2 | 4[c] | 3 | 22 | 11 | |
| 2019–20 | Eredivisie | 25 | 12 | 2 | 1 | — | 27 | 13 | ||||
| Total | 69 | 32 | 3 | 1 | 9 | 3 | 9 | 5 | 90 | 41 | ||
| Al Wahda | 2020–21 | UAE Pro League | 19 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 7[g] | 1 | 1[h] | 0 | 27 | 13 |
| Bursaspor | 2021–22 | TFF First League | 16 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 17 | 2 | ||
| Omonia | 2021–22 | Cypriot First Division | 6 | 2 | 5 | 0 | — | — | 11 | 2 | ||
| 2022–23 | Cypriot First Division | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1[d] | 0 | 1[i] | 0 | 6 | 1 | |
| Total | 10 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 17 | 3 | ||
| HNK Gorica | 2022–23 | Croatian Football League | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 15 | 0 | ||
| 2023–24 | Croatian Football League | 24 | 5 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 26 | 5 | |||
| Total | 39 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 41 | 5 | ||
| Career total | 406 | 136 | 38 | 17 | 46 | 19 | 19 | 9 | 509 | 181 | ||
- Appearance in UEFA Champions League
- Appearances in Eredivisie European play-offs
- Appearances in UEFA Europa League
- Four appearances and two goals in UEFA Champions League and two appearances in UEFA Europa League
- One appearance in Johan Cruyff Shield and four appearances and two goals in Eredivisie European play-offs
- Appearances in AFC Champions League
- Appearance in UAE League Cup
- Appearance in Cypriot Super Cup
International
- Scores and results list Slovenia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Matavž goal.[25]
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 October 2010 | Stožice Stadium, Ljubljana, Slovenia |  Faroe Islands | 1–0 | 5–1 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualification |
| 2 | 2–0 | |||||
| 3 | 3–0 | |||||
| 4 | 3 June 2011 | Svangaskarð, Tórshavn, Faroe Islands | Faroe Islands | 1–0 | 2–0 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualification |
| 5 | 2 September 2011 | Stožice Stadium, Ljubljana, Slovenia |  Estonia | 1–1 | 1–2 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualification |
| 6 | 15 November 2011 | Stožice Stadium, Ljubljana, Slovenia |  United States | 1–1 | 2–3 | Friendly |
| 7 | 2–3 | |||||
| 8 | 12 October 2012 | Ljudski vrt, Maribor, Slovenia |  Cyprus | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 9 | 2–0 | |||||
| 10 | 31 May 2013 | Schüco Arena, Bielefeld, Germany |  Turkey | 2–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 11 | 19 November 2019 | Stadion Narodowy, Warsaw, Poland |  Poland | 1–1 | 2–3 | UEFA Euro 2020 qualification |
